Never Alone on the Trail

Posted on February 19, 2012 by Jodi

Most people think of mushing as a solitary activity, and in a sense they are right.

On the trail with the team

Hours on the trail without other people or signs of civilization; save the occasional trail marker or the tracks of another sled. You get to experience Mother Nature at her finest & her most foul moods.  ( I was recently interviewed along with fellow mushers Jeff King and Brent Sass about just that for a article in the Alaska Dispatch on the Science of Dog Mushing in Alaska) You see places few people travel, and do so at a speed that gives you the opportunity to take it all in.

But from my perspective, I am never alone. First and foremost there is the team in front of me. I would not, could not, have the honor of doing what I do without them. I love them dearly and they are the worlds finest traveling companions. But also equally important is the team behind me. The many wonderful sponsors that make up Team Dew Claw. I wanted to take a break from Iditarod preparations today to give a huge shout out to some new and returning Team Dew Claw members. Having this wonderful team behind me makes it possible for me and the kids to participate in Iditarod and other events. And with the support of an awesome team, you are never alone.

So join me in thanking and welcoming: Teresa & Jamie Hollingsworth, Cynthia Lawrence Calkins & family, Mary L Brashler, & Gail Lieurance. Also Mush Thanks to renewed support and encouragement from: Marlys  Sauer and Pendra King. Of course we want to thank our families: Nancy Bailey & Forest Miller, Virginia Pond, and Margaret Thornton. While talking to my mom on the phone the other day she said it best, “you know we are with you every step of the way”

Want to join the team? Learn more at: http://www.dewclawkennel.com/

 

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Another race in the bag,

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Jodi

Drop Bag that is.

Yes the drop bags for the 2012 Iditarod are done, and tomorrow (2/13) I will turn them in to be shipped out to the various checkpoints along the trail. These bags contain all the gear I will have for the race, so it is critical that I get them done right. Earlier I wrote about the meat that goes into the dog diet &  the thousands of booties I will use during the race. In addition to these things I also need to pack and prepare all of my personal gear and food for the race. Last year we did a photo blog on everything that goes into these immensely important drop bags, you can read more here.

Having things to look forward to on the trail can really help lift your spirits. Personally one of the little luxuries I enjoy on the trail is fresh clean socks. I have sent those to checkpoints along the trail again this year. I am also a bit of a chocolate fanatic, with a slight caffeine addiction, so that was taken into account as I packed my human food. Along with some wonderful homemade candy (Thanks Mike!), gourmet chocolate from around the world (Thanks Kirstie!) and deluxe fudge (Thanks Jiva!) I have the makings of my ‘mushers mocha’ sent out along the trail. The ‘mushers mocha’ is a mix of instant coffee and hot coco, made in my thermos and enjoyed on the trail. Of course my human food also include nutritious energy packed choices, like: nuts, dried meat, smoked salmon, dried fruits, protein shakes, power bars, delicious breads from Fairbanks local coffee chop LuLu’s Bagels, and of course the chocolate dipped bacon my amazing husband Dan made me just for the race.

Here are some photos from this years Drop Bag extravaganza with some of my thoughts about the whole process of preparing for 1000 miles :

Bags of human snack food by checkpoint.

Each of these gallon bags is full of snack foods. There is no way to know now what will sound appetizing a month from now and 100′s of miles down the trail. So I over-pack, and assume that something will appeal to me out of all the choices I pack. If you look close among the goodies, you can see the packets of Emergen-C that I hope will help keep me healthy. You can also see that my food bags are decorated with some wonderful messages and quotes to help lift my spirits when I am out on the trail.

Still smiling, despite all the work.

Preparing drop bags is a coffee fueled activity at Dew Claw. You can see my full coffee mug always near by while I am working. Here I am sealing all the bags and preparing to take them all outside where I have the drop bags in order by checkpoint lined up in the driveway. As I finish preparing each item: human food, booties, dog snacks, I lay them out by checkpoint. This way I can look over all my gear for the entire race before packing the bags.

Drinks are sent out to be enjoyed on the trail.

Drinks are sent out to all the checkpoints. They can be defrosted in the pots of hot water I will be making at each checkpoint for dog food. (don’t forget how cold it will be during the race, those drinks will be frozen solid!) All mushers must carry a dog cooker to melt snow or heat water. The water is added to kibble or meat to make meals for the dogs. And while the water is heating, drinks or vacuum sealed food can be tossed into the pot to defrost. That is the main way I heat my meals while camping with the team on the trail. I keep the pot of my cooker clean enough that I can drink the water out of it. And when I am camping I will use some of that hot water to replenish the mushers mocha in my thermos. At checkpoints they often have water for the dogs, and sometimes even a microwave for the mushers. So at checkpoints I will heat up a drink, then when I am ready to leave I put it in my cooler with a warm snack for the dogs. The cooler in this case is insulation to keep things warm.

Return bags are used to get gear back after the race.

Most of what we send out is perishable, and if we did not use it, remains at the checkpoint. Human food is left behind to be eaten by volunteers, press, other mushers or villagers. Dog food is also left at the checkpoint, and checkpoint personnel see that it is given out in the rural communities. But there are still lots of things that mushers want returned. This is done with return bags. You know all those socks I mentioned I was sending out. Well once I replace the well worn ones with new ones from my drop bags at the checkpoint, they go into my return bag. Along with sled plastic if I didn’t use it. The booties taken off after the run to a checkpoint get stuffed into a ziplock bag and go in the return bag. Basically any non perishable item that I would like to get back after the race. All these things can be put into my return bag, which I leave at a designated location at the checkpoint.  Return bags are flown back to Anchorage and can be picked up at the Iditarod headquarters after the race, or are mailed to mushers who can not pick them up. You can see that they need to be labeled with my name and address. I also attach an arctic zip-tie to each one. Making it easy for me to seal them up once I have packed them with the gear I want back.

Packing my Ruby bags.

The Iditarod provides mushers with the bags we pack for each checkpoint. They are pre-labeled with the checkpoint name, and color coded by location. Red for the Alaska Range, Purple for the Yukon, Blue for Rohn to Cripple, Orange for the Unalakleet area. For each checkpoint one of the bags has the word “FREEZE” in bright red. This bag is for frozen meats and perishables. Although every effort is made to keep all the drops cold, a special effort is made for the “FREEZE” bags.

You can see the piles lined out by checkpoint on the right.

You can see the baggies of meat snacks we use on the trail lined up beside me. These will all be packed in the “FREEZE” bags. And to help we also add some large blocks of meat to the bottom of each “FREEZE” bag. The larger blocks of meat act like ice in a cooler. But they also are an important part of my emergency plan. If weather becomes sever and I need to stay at a checkpoint longer I can use the meat to make meals, or cut it up with my ax for additional snacks. Mushers over-pack in order to try and make sure that they are prepared for any situation.

Finished bags, just need to be weighed and sealed.

After everything is organized by checkpoint, and checked, and double checked bags can be packed. The bags are packed so that what I will need first at each checkpoint is easily accessible on top. If I have planned on going through a checkpoint I have everything I want to pick up and take with in one bag. And then additional food and gear in a second bag, just in case plans change.

Once weighed and sealed all the bags go back into the walk in freezer. I want to make sure everything is as frozen solid as possible. We worked way too hard and too long, want to make sure everything stays frozen solid, and the temperatures in Fairbanks this month have been unseasonably warm.

Bags will be turned in tomorrow, and then a weight will be lifted. They will be out of my hands and headed out on the trail ahead of me. If I have done my job I will be all set for the adventure ahead.
Now is the perfect time, as I reflect on all the hard work and effort, to thank the wonderful people who helped. Dan and Joel: thank you for putting up with me, I know I can be demanding and anal retentive about my drop bags, but I also know I could not do it without you!
And to the wonderful members of
Team Dew Claw, who generous support has helped make it possible for me to have quality food and gear for this years race ~ THANK YOU!!

 

 

 

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I know what Dogs like…

Posted on February 5, 2012 by Jodi

I know what dogs want…

Dogs want, dogs want, dogs want MEAT.

Anyone who has spent any time with me knows I love to sing. The fact that I sing badly and hardly ever know all the words has never stopped me. I just make up words as I go along, and hope that enthusiasm can replace talent. Many of our dogs have theme songs I made up for them. And more then once on the trail I find the strangest songs stuck in my head; like the second to last run on the recent T200 where I could not get Barry Manilow out of my head. I like my life to have a soundtrack, and when there is not one being provided my imagination just fills in. I have never had a sleep induced hallucination on the trail like so many mushers have. I have auditory hallucinations, like hearing a full marching band playing Sousa (at least I think it was Sousa) as I was running the Yukon River at night on Iditarod. Don’t ask why, my mind just works that way.

But I digress:
Today the song running through my head was my own version of The Waitresses, I Know What Boys Like. I know what dogs like, I know what dogs need, dogs like Meat…  and so on. What brought this on you might ask? Continue reading →

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Shake your Bootie & Crunch Time

Posted on February 4, 2012 by Jodi

The madness of Drop Bags has begun,
and it starts with a crash.

First Booties…

Right now is the big push to get all my gear ready to send out for the 2012 Iditarod. Working at home, with frequent breaks as I watch the online trackers to follow my friends on the Yukon Quest (join me in wishing them all a safe and fun journey). There are a lot of things that go into a thousand mile race, the mere though of planning, prepping and packing drop bags for 1000 miles still makes my head spin. I will be trying to find time to share the insanity with you over this next week as I get my gear and my head together.

Words of encouragement for the trail.

To get off on the right foot for a 1000 mile dog sled race takes booties, lots and lots of booties! We purchase most of our booties from Anchorage based Kipmik Products, John Cooper is a long time supporter of mushing in Alaska. He is at every race, donating prizes. Happy to help support his locally owned business. But we also get booties from a very special source; Paw Partners. I have been lucky enough to work with Paw Partners for 2 years now. Connie Lynkins and Linda Kurtis made me booties for the trail again this year and I want to thanks them. They come complete with motivational messages that bring a smile to my face, and help keep my spirits up. This year Connie worked with a group of students who wrote great messages on the booties for me, love them, thanks!

 

And now the crash…

Things can be fixed or replaces, I am just so grateful I was not injured.

I have jokingly called drop bag preparation “crunch time” in the past but this year that term takes on a whole new meaning. Unfortunately while driving to town on Wednesday Feb. 1st I hit a moose on the highway. I had made every attempt to avoid it, but on our icy roads it is unwise to slam on your breaks, so I was slowing as best I could in the conditions. Often moose move out of the way, this one was not so obliging. Luckily I am 100% fine, not a scratch. The moose and the truck were not as lucky. As Dan says, nobody wins in a headbutt contest.

In many ways the crash was mentally devastating, becuase a major truck repair was not in the plan or budget. There is so much work ahead for drop bags, meat to be purchased and cut, kibble to be measured and packaged, an entire race’s worth of supplies and gear organized and packaged to be sent to the checkpoints along the Northern Route of the Iditarod Trail. I had planned to accomplish so much this week, the crash could not have come at a worse time.

But if I really think about it, I realize how very fortunate I am to have not been injured or worse. However, my friends, in light of all that has happened, if you have ever thought about getting involved and helping Team Dew Claw, now would be a great time. Your donation would be greatly appreciated and put to good use. We have a convenient PayPal button on our website: www.dewclawkennel.com
This is just another challenge I will face this winter, like so many challenges; one I hope will not get the better of me.

I have received so much encouragement this winter, and kindness from the wonderful members of Team Dew Claw. And today I was even thinking. You know some days are hard, you don’t feel good, things are not going right, you just want to crawl back into bed, and giving up would be easy. But today, as I was facing one of those really horrible no good rotten days it also became clear to me. That the obstacles in front of me pale in comparison to the wonderful people standing with me.
Thank you all so much!!!

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Running the T200~

Posted on February 3, 2012 by Jodi

We (Dan & I) were both rookies at the T200; what the Tustumena 200 is called for short. We had heard wonderful things about the race, and had always thought it would be fun to check it out. But it is held the 4th Saturday in January, which is too close to the Yukon Quest for Quest teams to go run it. But with Dew Claw taking a year off from the Quest this was the perfect opportunity for us to go give it a look see. And we are both glad we did, cause we really like what we saw.

The trip down to the Kenai Peninsula is a pretty long haul. But we were lucky enough to break it into 2 days. Our wonderful friend Joel joined us to help with the trip and race. Packed into the truck were 3 humans and our gear, in the bed were bales of straw, meat for the dogs and 2 race sleds. The trailer was home to 26 dogs and more gear. Midway we spent the night with friends TC and Dave in Willow. It gave us the opportunity to take the dogs for a little fun run from Deshka Landing to let them stretch out and burn off some energy. Then a social evening of talking dog and eating a fine meal of veggie pasta and some t-bone style steaks from the caribou Dan got this fall. Joining us for dinner were TJ & Lindsey, who along with TC and Dave are the folks that will be watching my Iditarod dropped dogs after they are flow back to Anchorage. I am really fortunate that such wonderful dog loving mushers will be looking after the kids.

The second day of the trip day ended with a bang, literally. Well more like a bang, pop, hiss… and then about 40 minutes on the side of the road changing a tire. Not excatly what we had in the plans. But it seems my life rarely ever goes excatly as planned. After changing the tire, finding someplace to get a new spare became our next priority. But luckily armed with 2 iPhones, and Joel’s expert use of the ‘iWant’ app, we found a great locally owned tire shop. Steam on Wheels had our new used tire on the rim in as little time as it took us to drop* the dogs. And we were ready to roll again.
*for those unfamiliar with ‘dropping the dogs’ in the context of road trips, let me explain.  On road trips you need to stop every 3-4 hours and let all the dogs out of the dog box to stretch their legs and do their business. The doggie equivalent of a rest stop potty break. The term drop is also used in the context of racing, you will read more about that later.

After a long and slightly eventful second day of driving the humans of Team Dew Claw checked into the Aspen Hotel in Soldotna. They were a race sponsor, and also the location of the mandatory vet checks the next day, so it was a good convenient spot to stay. The cable TV was a nice treat considering we get no reception out where we live, and have not had television at home for years (the old TV is just for playing DVD’s). And the hotel pool & hot tub was too inviting for me to pass up. Luckily I got some quality time in there before the 4 pee wee hockey teams checked in and took over!

The next day brought vet checks, and mushers meetings. The dogs all checked out and were ready to run. Our gear had been double checked and packed before the trip down. This gave us a little free time to relax and enjoy the company of our fellow mushers and the many wonderful volunteers we met.

The morning of the race was cold by Kenai standards. But coming from Fairbanks which was having a record cold January it felt fine to us, we were used to worse. Teams prepared for the start in a well plowed start area, while local mushing fans wandered around taking in all the activity. Now you might expect 2 teams taking off from the same truck with only one handler between us to be a bit stressful. But not even close. Dan and I both had our gear ready & sleds packed well in advance, did our mandatory gear check early, and were the first 2 to have our GPS trackers pinned to our sleds. The dogs were mostly seasoned race dogs and relatively unaffected by the crowds. And the 3 younger boys I had with in my team, Onion, Carrot, and Chase-um seems to take their cue from the older race dogs. Dan went out before me with bib #2, and I was bib #12 so there was a bit of time after he left for me to get my team lined out. And we both got off to a great start.

Now the trail was new for this years race. (read more here) and looking at the trail map might be confusing (see the map here on the tracking page) The square is the start, the first dot on the way down is Oil Well Pad, keep going down to the bottom dot and that is the school in Homer for a 2 hour rest. You head back up from there to Oil Well Pad and then head left to Freddy’s, which is the half way. At the half way you get a 6 hour break, then you head back to Homer for another 2 hour break, and lastly back up the entire trail to the finish. The route is listed in the race rules as well. I was nervous about getting confused and not taking the right trail at Oil Well Pad. But my fears were totally unnecessary. Not only had the trail groomers done an amazing job of marking the trail. the volunteers at Oil Well Pad had fencing set up so that you were funneled through and onto the right trail. -Well except for went Dan got there the first time, he was a little faster then they thought and they had not moved the fence to open up the trail to Homer yet. It was quickly fixed and he was on his way. In Homer the community turned out in full force and the hospitality was great. The half way at Freddy’s was also everything a musher could ask for in a checkpoint. Great people, hot food and coffee, and a real luxury you do not always get while racing; a mushers only area with our own bathroom & bedrooms for sleeping! Totally Awesome!

Thanks to Joseph Robertia for this picture of the team coming into the Homer checkpoint

Now that I have gushed about the checkpoints, let me tell you about the trail; BEAUTIFUL!!! You will also hear a lot about the hills, and it was certainly hilly. Heck we ran back and forth through the Caribou Hills twice. And it was a workout to be sure. But nothing could take away from how amazing the views were, up in those hills on a warm sunny day.

When it was all said and done Dan finished 3rd, and I came in 7th. Here is a nice article written by our friend and fellow musher Joseph Robertia; his wife Colleen was 4th in the race and won the Sportsmanship Award (voted on by fellow mushers). Sprint to the finish — Smyth passes King for T200 victory

Both of us were really pleased with how the kids did. Dan’s team stayed strong and happy for the entire race. My younger dogs had a lot of fun, Chase-um was dropped early as he went out a little too strong at the start, having not yet learned to pace himself. So I had to be the ‘pacer’ and decided it was in his best interest to stop racing at the half way point. Carrot and Onion stayed with the team until the last leg. For the last leg I left them, wanting to make sure their experience stayed positive; and 2 adult who I did not want running any further, Ahtna and Skittle. Dropping a dog is like benching a athlete, for their own good and to ensure they are rested and well cared for after an extra tough workout. Dropped dogs are given to race veterinarians until they can be handed off to your own handler. I wrote a bit about dropped dogs in an earlier blog, read more.

Since I had started with only 13 (the race allowed for 14) I was now down to 8 dogs. But they were my rock solid strongest 8, and we had a very fast fun run to the finish. The last leg of the trail was home to a large population of rabbits. Rabbits who thought it fun to charge across the trail in front of my team. My team thought it was fairly fun too, and with each rabbit crossing we gained a burst of speed. I had been running a new leader who had never led in a race, Sparrow. Sparrow was not as focused when faced with these furry little distractions, and would have happily raced into the woods after the rabbits, without Loben’s influence that is. Loben, my trusted leader knew that we would not be actually chasing them into the woods and did her job of keeping the whole team moving forward. I had hoped to take a good look at the dogs in my team to decide which ones would be joining the dogs Dan ran in his T200 team for Iditarod. And I am pleased to say that all 8 did so well I will be having a very hard time choosing.

Dan had finished ahead of me, and his team was already fed and resting in the cozy straw filled boxes of the dog trailer. Dan had stayed awake and was waiting for me with Joel. Joel was also awake,  having pulled double duty this entire race, taking care of both teams! Getting next to no sleep, and never getting to see the trail, and smiling the whole time. Yeah Joel, we can not thank you enough.

Wish I had a camera with to share the beauty of the T200 with you, but alas when racing I don’t often have the presence of mind to use a camera and so I rarely take one. Some of the nicer race photos we saw were taken by ‘Photography by Antonia‘ And she was kind enough to post a gallery on facebook for all to see:
Here are the photos of me, Dan & the kids.
For the complete album of T200 images click here.

The trip home was also a 2 day adventure. No major break downs or surprises, thankfully. And we stopped mid way to stay with dear friends Theresa and John. I have known Theresa for years, and am honored to call her a friend. The men all went to bed long before she and I were ready to stop talking, laughing, solving the problems of the world and call it a night. I invite you to check out her Go Mush website for more news and information on sled dog sports.

Felt great to get home, except for the weather. We had slowly watched the temperature drop as we drove nearer and nearer to Fairbanks. The above 0 temperature we had been enjoying had felt pretty good, and now we were home to the deep cold of the sub-zero far North. Race dogs went from the trailer to the heated garage for a big meal and a nice night of R&R. I have to admit, once all the kids were settled in, it felt great to take a hot shower and sleep in my own bed.

There were so many people involved in making this a great event, and I want to thank all of the volunteers, veterinarians, organizers, trail crew, and our wonderful friends who helped us along the way.
MUSH THANKS Y’ALL

 

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Always Getting Ready

Posted on January 23, 2012 by Jodi

At least that is what it feels like around here these days!

The Dew Claw dog trailer, packed up and ready to go.

The next big adventure for Dan and I and the kids is the Tustumena 200** (T200), and we are both really looking forward to it. We will be traveling down to the Kenai Peninsula and getting to see new trails in an area where neither of us has run before. The kids have been running great on our home trail, but you have to figure a chance of scenery will do them good too. Plus once again I get the big rookie R next to my name.

 

**To follow the T200: Check out their website for information and updates.
You can also find them on facebook.**

This race will give us the chance to really take a good look at the race team. As you know we are also gearing up for the Iditarod, and the races leading up to it are a valuable part of that preparation. I need to opportunity to practice my checkpoint routine under actual race conditions, like added stress and less sleep. Also looking forward to giving my new Alpaca socks a test run. Been training in them this past week, and love them, looking forward to giving them the race test. Making sure you have the right race gear, that it preforms well, and you can use it flawlessly is part of the preparations accomplished at races like the T200.

For this race Dan will be running a team of dogs that we are pretty sure we want on my Iditarod team. He will be making sure they are all strong and happy, and looking for any possible ‘chinks in the armor’ so to speak. I will be taking a mixed team of dogs. Some that are still in the running to make the Iditarod squad, and some younger dogs who will be making their race debut with Team Dew Claw. My job is to make sure those young dogs have a wonderful positive race experience, while watching the others with a  critical eye as to which will be joining me on the trail to Nome. ~You can see team rosters for Dan and I at the end of this post~

On a trail breaking training run with Dan.

On the long commute to town today I was thinking about this upcoming weekend, how excited I was that Dan and I would be traveling together to run the T200.  The following thought went through my rambling mind. “Racing” is an interesting verb. Used in one sense it means competing against others to be the fastest. Used in another sense it means the act of being in a race. When asked if I am racing Dan (which technically I will be this weekend, as we are both running the same race) I am inclined to answer, “No I am racing the team of beautiful dogs in front of me”. We may be in the same competition, but we are not necessarily competing. In many ways we are actually still on the same team. He has his goals for the team he is running, that will ultimately help further our kennel’s goals. And I have my goals for my team, again part of the long term goals for Team Dew Claw. Please wish up both luck for a safe, fun, positive run.

Race dogs Elwood and Skittles in the garage. Dogs regularly come in the garage so we can give them a thorough going over to ensure they are prefectly healthy. This includes grooming, massage and pedicure (trimming toenails).

We have heard that the Tustumena will have live GPS trackers, so friends can follow along at home. This technology allows people to follow races closely, without the expensive travel or risk of cold toes. Also allowing the entire world to know when someone gets off trail (often before the musher themselves realizes it!) However this technology (like most technology) is neither full-proof nor perfect. The GPS tracking system does an excellent job, but for folks who are trying to make sense of the data we get from the ‘blip’ (what we jokingly call the spot on the map which represents a musher) may I recommend the “Mushing Tech” blog. These articles help make sense of how to view the data fans see on race tracker websites, with some interesting insight. These articles help make sense of things, and underscore the fact the GPS data must be interpreted with some knowledge of long distance mushing, trail conditions, and understanding of how the technology works.

Also as we get ready I am excited to report that things are moving forward with Iditarod preparations. Although there is still much to be done, and some major expenses left to cover, we are making headway.  For instance:

  • Once again we are going to be feeding Baileys Farms freeze dried meats! We have been feeding Baileys Farms meats for the past few years. it can be purchased in Alaska at Cold Spot Feeds in Fairbanks, and Underdog Feeds in Willow
    Why Freeze Dried for racing? Freeze dried meats are not temperature sensitive, and never spoil, no matter what. We are assured high quality meat products in any situation. They reconstitute easily & quickly. And they weight a fraction of what frozen meats would, significantly cutting down on weight in the sled.
  • It took some doing but I found a quality bulk source of dog dishes. Container & Packaging Supply carries 64 ounce, food grade, freezer safe containers. They are super lightweight, and the freezer safe part is key, even at sub-zero temps the bowls do not get brittle and crack.
  • Also looking forward to the shipment of “Mushers First Aid” we ordered from Mountain Ridge. Love this stuff! The smaller bottles fit in my inside pants pocket, so it is always warm and ready to use. Along with massaging muscles I use to to massage the dogs feet as I inspect them all at checkpoints. As an added benefit it is all natural and I can apply it bare handed, and my hands are softer and less chapped.

Of course there are still a great number of things to be stockpiled and prepared, and a long list of logistics to be handled. It is safe to say we still have a huge task ahead of us. It is not to late to show your support and Join Team Dew Claw as we prepare for exciting adventures ahead. And let me take a minute and thank the wonderful people who have already joined the team! MUSH THANKS to Team Dew Claw!!

Leaders Jake and Loben hanging out in the house durring a cold snap.

Team Roster for the T200:

Dan’s Team: Grumpy, Orchid, Purge, Ribdon, Chess, Windex, Freezer, Vickers, Elias, Doc, Pledge, Cloud, & Lubbock.

Jodi’s Team: Skittles, Loben, Jake, Elwood, CC, Sparrow, Sister, Dust, Ahtna, Dopey, (and making their race team debut) Onion, Carrot, & Chase-um.

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